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Undateable's Ron Funches Lost 100 Lbs. – Here's How He Did It

Fans of Undateable may have noticed that Shelly has been looking a lot slimmer recently!

Ron Funches has lost an incredible 100 lbs. – the 5’11” actor has gone from 355 lbs. to 245 lbs. – over the past year by sticking to a healthy diet and adding exercise to his routine. He was motivated to lose the weight after his mother voiced her concern for his health.

“My mom had mentioned a couple of times that she had been concerned, and she never mentioned it before, so when she brought that up, it made me take notice,” Funches, 32, tells PEOPLE. “And then I have my son [Malcolm], who’s 12, and I was seeing that his habits weren’t [healthy], and that I was probably a bad influence on him. I wanted to change that.”

Another motivating factor was seeing himself on TV.

“It definitely helps when you can see yourself,” says Funches. “You’re watching back your show and you’re like, ‘I didn’t think I was that big!’ ”

Funches decided to get serious about his weight loss in December 2014. He overhauled his diet, cutting out candy and sugary drinks, including his beloved Cherry Coke.

“It’s my favorite thing,” says the actor. “I love a good Roy Rogers or Shirley Temple, and I had to give those up. And Philly cheesesteaks. I love Philly cheesesteaks, and now they really aren’t around anymore.”

Now Funches makes healthy choices throughout the day. For breakfast, he eats Greek yogurt with fruit and a crunchy cereal, or oatmeal with fruit and berries or peanut butter. Lunch is a turkey sandwich or small burrito, and dinner is chicken stir-fry or halibut.

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“It’s simple, and it’s all stuff that I still enjoy,” he says.

The comedian never worked out before, and now exercises six days a week.

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“I never was into athletics or any team sports, so it’s completely new for me,” he says.

Funches meets with his trainer Jorgen DeMay – who he was introduced to by Undateable executive producer Bill Lawrence – three times a week for cardio, weight training and boxing sessions, and on the days he works out on his own, he jogs two miles on an incline twice a day.

“I’ve also been taking a spin class on occasion, and I’m looking into taking a boxing class,” says Funches.

Funches says the best part of dropping the weight has been all the energy he has now.

“I can do a lot more things without being tired and sweaty,” he says. “And I like nice clothes, so it’s nice to be able to buy a nice a jacket. When you get to be a certain size as a man, all the shirts end up having giant dogs on them or things like that!”

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